The Penn's Grove record., 1887-06-25
MYSTERIOUS VALlSE.


sentry, will you kindly keep your
eye on my bag for a few minutes2 l
am going to have a plunge in the Ser.
p%entlne," said a well-dressed, middle
aged gentleman to me, n warns sum-
mer morning a few years ago, as | was
on duty at the park gate of knights
bridge Cavalry Barracks.
"All right, SIR" l replied. If 1 am
relieved before you return, l saall hand
it owe to the next sentry"
"Oh, l shan't be more than half an
hour at the latest, as l must be in the
city by nine. l prefer leaving my va
lise with you; there are so many vaga-
bonds always swarming about Hyde
Park, that it is quite possible that one
OF them might take a fancy to 1t while
] am bathing. 1t doesn't contain vely
valuable property-only a suit of clothes
and a few documents of no use to any
one but the owner as the saying IS.
All the same, however, [ have no de-
sire to lose it." So saying. the gentle.
near turned away, and walked briskly
across the park in tho direction of the
berpentine.
The request to look after his property
did not in the least surprise me. as
numerous robberies from the clothing
of persons bathing had for some time
before been reported to the police. |
lifted the bag-upon which the letters
w. N. were painted, and which was in
the battered condition indicative of
having been much tumbled about-and
placed 1t behind the low wall that lay
between the barracks and the footpath.
The barracks clock struck eight.
Fully half an hour had elapsed since
the owner of the bag departed, and as
yet there was no sign of him; the
''quarter.past" was chlmed from the
neighboring clocks, and still be did not
turn up; and, al the minutes passed, |
thought to myself that it was time tie
was looking sharp if he really wished
to be In the city by nine.
About haIf-past eight l perceived a
great commotion in the park. Men
were rushing from all quarters in the
direction of the S~erpentine; and soon
afterwards / ascertained from a passer-
by that the excitement was caused by
one of the numerous bathers having
been drowned. An uneasy suspicion
was at once excited within me that the
person who had come to such a sad end
was the gentleman who had left his
valise in my charge, which suspicion
was intensified when l was relieved at
nine, with the article still unclaimed.
/ reelected, however, that its owner
may have been chained to the scene of
the disaster by that morbid curiosity
which induce people to linger about the
spot where any calamity of the kind
has recently occurred, and then, finding
that he was pressed for time, and know
ing that his property would be perfectly
safe, had gone direct TO the city.
l handed over the bag to the sentry
who relieved me without mentioning to
HIM anything OF the circumstances OF
the case; and when he returned from
duty at eleven. / eagerly asked him If
the yalise had been called for.
"No," he replied, sit is still lying
behind the wall"
/ went on sentry again at N O'Clock
and no one had come for 1t. 1t was
the height OF the London season and
Hyde Park presented its customary gay
appearance; but the imposing array OF
neutrality-suspicious. equipages. DASH
ing eQuestrians and fashionably-d dressed
ladies and gentlemen, which at other
times was to me a most interesting
spectacle, that afternoon passed by un.
needed, as all my thoughts were cen
tered on speculations regarding the fate
OF the owner of the bag. Before being
relieved at three l had 1t conveyed to
my room in barracks, and after coming
off guard placed it for greater security
In the troop store. That evening. be-
fore ''stables," when the orderly cor
poral had read out the duties for the
succeeding day, he said, addressing
me: "Jones, you have to attend the
orderly room Tomorrow"
"Why?" l inquired.
"You have been reported for neglect
ing to salute Captain Sir Carnaby jerks
as he passed you while on sentry this
afternoon was the corporal's an
swer.
/ laid nothing by way Of excuse
This heinous charge was in all proba.
bility true. l believe 1 might have
omitted to ''pressnt" to Her Majesty
the Queen herself, If she had passed
that afternoon In her state carriage, 80
distracted was l by the engrossing sub
ject OF this valise.
After stables, / left barracks for my
customary walk, and purchasing a copy
Of the Echo from a juvenile news
vender, l read the particulars of the
fatality OF the morning. Friends had
identified the body, which was that OF
o gentleman named Nixon, who had
resided at Bayswater.
"NiSonl That corresponds with the
initial M on the bag" l thought to
myself, now perfectly convinced that
the deceased wa the person l had seen
In the morning. / also ascertained
from the newspaper report that a man
had been apprehended on suspicion of
having attempted to rifle the pockets OF
the clothes of the drowned man, and
who had been roughly handled by the
crowd, before a policeman could be
procured to take him into custody.
After a moments reelection ! decided to
call at the address given in the paper,
In order to arrange about the restora-
ton Of the bag to the relatives of the
deceased.
Reaching the house | knocked softly
at the door, and stated my business to
The domestic who appeared, by whom
I was shown into u room and imme-
a - -